Kleimann needs to stop pointing his finger

Published 6:00 pm, Wednesday, February 1, 2006

We can understand State District 3 candidate David Kleimann's desire to know exactly who sent the anonymous fax to state GOP headquarters that triggered a battle for his political life.

But Kleimann needs to stop blindly pointing the finger of accusation at his opponents, who say they had nothing to do with this, and instead point it at himself: had he resigned his position on the Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District well in advance of the deadline to file for office, this wouldn't be an issue at all.

This political tempest began when the state GOP received a fax - which did not include the sender's telephone number or any other identification - on Jan. 6. The fax alleged that because Kleimann held a "lucrative office" as a board member with the LSGCD at the time he filed for the March 7 primary, he was ineligible for the state senate race. State party chairwoman Tina Benkiser decreed Kleimann was ineligible, but he was granted a temporary restraining order on Jan. 11. A judge granted Kleimann a temporary injunction on Jan. 18 that allowed his name to remain on the ballot, but the issue isn't dead yet. A final hearing is scheduled for April 17 in the 221st state District Court.

Initially, Kleimann appeared to have a solid claim, and indeed, two judges have kept his candidacy alive.

But the latest hearing did bring to light some additional points in the law supporting the state GOP's position that cannot be easily dismissed. In fact, Kleimann's own attorney, Andy Taylor, acknowledged to The Courier recently that although he still maintains Kleimann has a rightful place on the ballot, he would advise Kleimann and anyone else in his position to avoid any controversy and resign their seats on water boards well before they run for legislative office. The law is just murky enough to invite legal challenges by opponents or state parties, Taylor said.

Kleimann's opponents were able to anticipate such problems and avoid controversy by resigning their seats on boards or commissioners. Frank Denton, of Conroe, had been appointed to the Texas Commission on Licensing and Regulation by Gov. Rick Perry, but resigned the position in August. Bob Reeves said he resigned from the Center Independent School District board of trustees in December because "I wasn't doing the school board justice." Robert Nichols, of Jacksonville, resigned from the Texas Transportation Commission on June 30, 2005. And frankly, given the possible conflict of interests that could arise from being a legislator and a member of a water board, Kleimann had sufficient ethical grounds for resigning his seat on the board.

Yes, it would be interesting to know who sent the fax. But Kleimann doesn't know, and the state GOP if it does know, isn't telling. To push his opponents to take an oath of honesty on that point is unseemly. It's pointing a finger blindly without any proof, and that's not fair. Rather than pointing fingers, Kleimann needs to be counting his blessings that he's still a candidate, and get on to the real issues.